Nikki Bella On Finding Success On Her Own, Addresses Rumors Of Her As Smackdown GM, If She’s The Definitive Wrestler Of A Generation

Nikki Bella recently spoke with Rolling Stone‘s Kenny Herzog following her Dancing With The Stars exit; you can read a few highlights below:

Nikki on if she looks back and is surprised at how much she and Brie have grown since they were starting out: 

Sometimes you need that journey. You have to go through things to know what you really want out of life, and that’s happened to Brie and I over the past 10 years. We fell in love with wrestling, and then we really wanted to break barriers, and we now get to do that because that’s evolved beyond the ring. When I leave this world, I don’t want to leave just having a well-known name but having made a difference. I never would have thought, when I was 23 and first stepped foot in that ring, that it would give me a platform to use my voice. It’s crazy what can happen in a decade and how much you can grow as a person and as a woman and truly find your voice.

Does Nikki think she’s defined herself as the women’s wrestler of a generation? 

Through my neck injury, a lot of people have said, “You’ve done all you can do.” But in my heart, I truly don’t [think I have]. There’s so much more to do, so many more women to empower and uplift. I never want to walk away and be like, “I did all I can.” Women have such a far way to go in WWE until we truly are where we could be. I’ve yet to hit the level of where my fiancée John [Cena] is at, or even the Rock, and I would love to be the first female to do that.

Nikki comments on finding success on her own: 

People can say, “Oh, she gets this or that with John,” but John wasn’t in my matches. Everything I did, I did on my own, and I did so much leading up to when we were together. Even with Birdiebee, John doesn’t do anything with it except be a typical man [and say], “I’m so proud of you, great job.” I know I’ve worked so hard to get to where I’m at, and I’m not close to where I want to be, and it’s because of me and my sister and amazing people. I couldn’t do this on my own, but when I hear, “Oh, you’re fiancé…” they weren’t on the floor of Dancing With the Stars doing ballroom with me. When you let those comments effect you, you don’t grow, and if anything, that negativity would fuel me even more…. Let me show what women can really do, and it doesn’t take a man to do it.

Related: The Bella Twins Launch Birdiebee Lifestyle & Clothing Brand Aimed At ‘Empowering & Educating Women’

Nikki comments on rumors of her pitching an idea for her as Smackdown GM before Daniel Bryan took the position: 

[Laughs] I’m not gonna lie, I totally pitched hard to do that. The company thought it was a great idea, but creatively at the time it wasn’t going to work out because I did sign on with Dancing With the Stars and no one knew yet, so it was going to be too short of a run. But they were positive about it, so I’m hoping that door stays open. I would love to come back and be a bad guy. I feel like I’m where John stands — I’m better used as a good guy. But can you imagine me coming back as a bad girl and having some fun with Shane [McMahon]? It would just be amazing. So we’ll see.